Break the Equation is a blog about finding ways to create "Triple Wins"... those times in life where 1+1=3... or even more! :D

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

5 Things You Need for Your New Office

I have found myself in the start-up
mode multiple times, this time is had a welcoming comfort to it that I just
hadn’t felt before. Maybe it was due to my level of clarity that I was finally
back on the path that was right for me, or maybe it was my return of energy
that I just hadn’t had for the last 7 months. Either way, there I was opening a
new office, knowing exactly what I needed to do to create a great environment
even though it was smaller (1000 sf). It took less then 2 hours after signing
the lease until we had our first team meeting with a potential client. A small
reception desk came with the place and as a client I welcomed him in with a
huge smile and “WELCOME TO?." I didn’t know what we were calling the place
just yet, so I just said… Welcome to a place that is going to change the world!
:D

It's easy to get caught up into
wanting to create a location that competes with all the cool places you’ve
heard about, jealousy can set in quickly… but when it comes down to it I
believe there are 5 things to setting up a new office: (#5 being the most
important)

1. White Boards – ldeas
are stuck in all of us and having a location to draw those ideas out, write
things down and brainstorm, visually is key to innovation. A picture, even an
awful drawn one, is worth 84words, but having it stuck in your head doesn’t help anyone. A professional
white board cost between $200 - $500, but you can buy a 4x8 sheet of showerboard from Lowe’s for $13 that works almost (almost), as well. The first
day we went out and bought 6 of them.

2.
White Tables
– I’m a big believer in a thing I call “TableTime." Everyone working on a
project sits at a set of white tables at least for the morning hours. It seems
simplistic, but it is the 2nd most important thing you could do to improve the
odds of the success of your business. The benefits of TableTime are remarkable and
cover everything from vastly increased communication and learning to stronger
team trust and relationships. The thing I find most interesting about TableTime
is that it doesn’t even require people to interact …simply having people in
proximity for consistent periods of time seems to have this amazing effect. All
that and you can save a butt load of money, as opposed to desks. You can buy
10’ whitetables at Costco for under $100.

3. Comfortable Chairs – It
doesn’t matter how good your perks are, what kind of work you give people or
how much you pay them, if you give people an uncomfortable chair they will
eventually hate you. A comfortable chair (or standing desk) is the base of
which all other things are built on. The Aeron
by Herman Miller has been the status symbol of choice but at $900 a pop it’s a
bit tough to justify. My chair of choice is the Quantum9000 by Realspace, which you can get for about $300 on sale. The keys to a
good chair are adjustable and mesh on both back and bottom.

4. Fast
Internet – I am not sure if it matters what type of business you are in, we
are all dependent on the Internet to make our business more successful. Whether
its googling questions, working with SaaS software or communicating, every
second a person waits for a response cost time and money, but more importantly
human frustration. You can get a 100mbps plan from Comcast for around
$200 a month. My personal recommendation is to buy the fastest Internet
connection you can possibly afford.

5. Human
Energy – Believe it or not when people feel energized, everything goes
better. As a leader in your office, your job is to make sure you are creating
and transferring positive energy. You feel this when you walk into a Starbucks
or an Apples store… it’s hard to put your finger on it, but it exists in the
fiber. If you don’t bring it, it won’t exist.

Two other points I have realized by
going back to the start-up mode again. One, is a building a culture can happen
with just a few people. We only have 6 people in our office right now, but our
culture feels very strong and we are defining it more and more every day. Two,
that building a great corporate culture and an engaged workforce doesn’t cost
much, in fact you can save money, but it does take a different way of looking
at things.

So I’ll ask you… what’s your office
like? And are you willing to change it to improve collaboration, culture and
engagement? :D

p.s. Our new office is at 238 MathisFerry Rd, Suite 102 MtP, SC 29464 feel free to stop by… the tour is a lot
shorter, but the energy is better than ever! :D